Pianoforte-action.



PATENTED APR. 23, 1907.

J. DOYLE.

PIANOFORTE ACTION.

APPLICATION FILED JAN. 11, 1906.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

17224 715071 (jbJE 2w a M 2 7n: NORRIS PETERS 1:0,, WASHINGIDN. n c

PATENTED APR. 23, 1907.

a m T T Mau M Wfl m 5 m0 Q 3 9 k I w/ J J 0L m H mum R TL D M .MVLN m 4 y L Pm h I L P m u v a.. S r 4 S M T m m UNITED STATES PATENT orrron.

PlANOFORTE--ACTION-v Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented April 23, 1907.

Application filerl ary 11,1906. Serial No. 296,609.

To all whom it may concern.-

, Be it known that I, J OSEPI-I DOYLE, aciti- Zen of the United States, residing at West Indianapolis, in the county of Marion and State of Indiana, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Pianoforte-Actions, of which the following is a specification.

This invention has relation to pianoforteactions, so called.

It is the object of the invention to provide improvements in various parts of the action to the ends of securing an easier and gener ally smoother operation of the parts, and especially avoiding any tendency of the hammer to rebound, however rapid may be the strokes upon the key. u

Other improvements incidental to the foregoing and to the perfect operation of the action are attained, as will appear from the description hereinafter given.

The drawings hereto annexed form a part of this specification and are to be referred to as such, of which drawings Figure 1 is a side elevation of the parts represented as in a state of rest. Fig. 2 is a similar view representing the parts as in action or after a key has been struck. Figs. 3 and 4 are detail views in perspective of several parts, showing their construction and mode of operation in detail. Fig. 5 is an enlarged sectional view of the damper-block, also disclosing in side view a portion of its actuating mechanism.

Like reference-numerals indicate like parts and features wherever they occur.

In the drawings, 1 designates the key, mounted on the balance-rail 2 irrthe manner shown in the drawings, which mounting, as stated hereinbefore, forms the subject-mat ter of a separate application for Letters Patent, or it may be mounted in any other suit able or well-known way. It is essential, however, that the mounting should be such that by a relatively quick and short depression of the key the hammer will be operated to strike the string with a quick stroke.

My improved action is operated by means of a jack 3 and rocker 4, fixed adjustably on the inner upper part of the key 1, similar to that used in square pianos.

5 designates the hammer, which when at rest leans against the felt-covered hammer rest-rail 6. The hammer-shank 5 connects the hammer-head with the hammer-butt 7, which is pivoted on a flange 8, secured on the sound.

hammer-rail 9. At its pivoted point the hammer-butt is tenoned, and the tenoned point is set in a groove in the flange 8, as will be observed by an inspection of the drawings, and the rail 9 is provided on its front face with a tongue or rib 9, which fits closely in a horizontal groove 8, made in the back of the flange 8, to hold the latter securely in position. The hammer-rail 9 is prepared at its upper side to receive the damper-flange 10, recessed in its under side to fit on a tongue or rib 11 to keep it straight. The said dainper-flange is further secured to the rail 9 by a screw 12, passing through the flange into the rib 11. 13 designates the damper-lever, having a piece of felt 14 on its front edge, against which the upper end of a spring 15 bears, the said spring being secured at its lower end to the upper face of the flange 10. The damper-lever is also provided on its lower front face with a piece of felt 16, which bears against a piece of felt 17, set in a recess 17, formed in the rear of the rail 9. A spoon 18, so called, bears against a piece of felt on the front of the damper-lever near its lower end, said spoon being secured at its lower end to the back-check lever 19, as shown. The lower end of a wire 20 is inserted in the upper end of the damper-lever 13 and extends up straight to the damperblock 21, where it is bent forward at a right angle under said block, then straight up the front in a saw cut formed in the front face of the block to about its middle, where it is turned back at a right angle and extends into a hole formed to receive it tightly, so as to insure it being kept in place and not becoming dislodged unintentionally. The block 21 is felted in the usual way to adapt it to bear upon the string 22 and perform its common office.

23 is a straight bar of wood that rests at its lower end upon the key and extends vertically upward to the back-check lever 19, to which it is pivoted. The bar .3 is felted at its foot where it bears on the key to prevent A notch 24 is made in the side of the said bar just high enough to allow its upper felted edge to barely touch the link 25 when the key is free, and the lower felted edge of the said notch is low enough to escape touching the said link 25 when the latter is in motion.

A spring 26 is connected with the jack 3 at its heel and with the rocker, which spring tends to move the upper end of the jack backward under the shoulder 27, formed on flange-block 38, secured to the flange-rail 39 the lower end of the piece 28. A wire 29 ex tends up from the rocker behind the heel of the jack for the jack to lean against when the action-frame is out. The jack is thus main tained in engagement with the shoulder 27 until a stroke or impulse is given to the key to operate the hammer, when the jack will be raised, raising the piece 28 and bringing the projection 29 on its lower end into contact with the regulating-button 30 on the lower end of the adjusting-screw 31, which screw extends through the regulating-rail 32, that extends from side to side of the piano-action frame and is fastened at its ends by means (not shown) that may be quickly and easily operated to release the rail to remove it. The lower end of the regulating-buttons 30 are felted to obviate noise.

The beveled shoulder 27 has the vertical part lined or covered with felt, while the inclined part is covered with chamois-skin or soft leatherto resist wear. In normal position the upper end of the aek will rest against the felted vertical part of the offset and barely touch the leather-lined. inclined part.

The piece 28 ust above its lower end passes through a mortise formed in the forward end of the link 25, and said piece 28 is pivoted in said mortise. The upper portion of the piece or bar 28 is made fast to a similar bar 33 by screws 34, and it may be grooved on the back to receive a registering tongue formed on the face of the bar to keep the two parts in alinement. The part of the bar 33 just below the hammer-butt is curved to the right or left, as shown at 33, and below said curve the bar passes through a felted notch in the back-check lever 19 and. at its upper end extends into and is pivoted to the hammer-butt. The bars 33 and 28 in operation act as though they were composed ofa single piece and serve to cause the hammer to engage or strike thestring when an impulse is given to the key and thereafter to draw the hammer away from the string as the upper end of the aek 3 engages the shoulder 27 of the bar 28, whereby the aforesaid parts will be caused to assume the position indicated by Fig. 1. The splicing of the parts and 28 is for the purpose of readily separating them, so that the hammer and other associated parts may be taken out from the front without disturbing other parts.

The check-wire 34 issecured at its lower end in the forward end of the back-check lever 19 and extends upward and is provided on its upper end with a pad 35, adapted to be brought into contact with a hammer-butt head 36, connected with the hammer-butt by a bar or Wire 37.

The link 25 is pivoted at its front end on below a rib 10, above which rib a flange 4:1 is secured, to which the back-cheek link 19 is pivoted at its rear end. The notch 24 in the bar 23 is quite roomy so far as the operation. of the link 25 therein is concerned, the said link not being supposed to touch the bar 23 in its movements excepting the felt 1-2 on the upper side or wall; but to insure against rattling by the parts con'iing together the said notch is lined with ehamois-skin or the like.

An elbow-spring -13 is suitably secured in place at one end upon the llangebloe 38. The wire of said. elbow-spring is then passed downward under the lower end of the .llangeblock 38, and after making an angular turn therein it is extended forward to the bar 23, with its quick curve entering the notch 24- of the latter, so that the stress of the said elbow-spring is exerted upon the bar 23 to hold the latter down inv place and to returnit afterit has been raised by the key. N ow when a key has been struck and held down the upper end of the jack will have left the shoulder 27 and stand. entirely clear of the bar 28. Before this action has takenv place the bar23 will have been raised, raising the link 19, and consequently tipping the spoon 18 against the damper-lever 13, throwing the damper back from the string. The check 35 meanwhile will be brought against the back-stop 36, stopping the hammer a short distance from the string and holding it at this pointf At this instant the bars 28 and their connections are hung, as it were, to the butt of the hammer free from anything else to hold them up. The gravity of these last-mentionedv parts is su'llieient to hold the hammer against rebounding. When the key is released, the gravity of the parts just mentioned, in conjunction with the springs, will quickly draw the hammer back, restore the damper to the wire, bringing the check to normal position and bringing the jack back from its place against the regulating-buttmi with its upper end into engagement with the shoulder 27 in the lower end of the bar 28. The bar 33 is curved. to the right or left just below the hammer-butt to enable a workman or tuner of pianos to get behind the same with a screw-driver or other means to adjust, remove, or replace parts, as maybe necessary.

I claim- 1. The combination, with the hammerbutt, the aek and key, of a vertical bar pivoted at its upper end to the hammer-butt and operated. from the jack, the pivoted check-lever, a second vertical bar pivoted at its upper end to said cheek-lever and resting at its lower end on the key, the check-wire and its back-stop said cheek-wire being eonnectcd with the outer end of the cheek-lever, the damper and damper-lever, and a spoon connected with the check-lever and bearing the vertical bar 28 and at its rear end to a l at its free end against the lower end of the damper-lever, the flange-rail, a flange thereon, a link pivoted at one end to the flange and at the other to the first-noted vertical bar pivoted to the hammer-butt.

2 The combination, with the hammerbutt, the jack and key, of a vertical bar pivoted at its upper end to the hammer-butt and operated from the jack, the check-lever, a second. vertical bar pivoted at its upper end to said check-lever, and resting at its lower end on the key and having a broad notch in its side, the check-wire and its back-stop said check-wire being connected with the outer end of said check-lever, and a spoon connected with the check-lever and bearing at its free end against the lower end of the damper-lever, the flange-rail, a flange thereon, and a link pivoted at one end to the flange, extending through the broad notch of said second vertical bar and pivoted to the first-noted vertical bar.

3. The combination, with a key and hammer-butt, of a vertical bar having a broad lateral notch and resting at its lower end upon said key, a second vertical bar, means effecting connection between said hammerbutt and said second vertical bar, a flangerail, a flange thereon, a link pivoted to said flange and extending through said notch, and connected to said second bar and a spring connected at one end to said flange, extending down behind the latter and under said link, its opposite or free end engaging the lower end wall of said notch.

4. The combination, with a key, of the hammer and hammer-butt, the flange-rail, flanges upon said rail, the back-check lever pivoted upon one of said flanges, the link pivoted upon the other of said flanges, the connected-together bars one having its upper end connected to the hammer-butt, and the other of said bars being connected to the latter link, a bar having its lower end resting upon the inner end of said key and its upper end pivoted to the back-check lever.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

JOSEPH DOYLE.

Witnesses:

FRANK D. HEATON, J. J. SADLER. 

